The comments of the NPR article suggest that the reporting is misleading at best, wrong at worst, and isn't news (the facts were reported months ago).
Edit: to expand on the comments in the NPR piece- Macklemore and Ryan Lewis didn't sign with a label to get distribution, they stayed independent despite hiring ADA (a subsidiary of the Warner Music Group) to get them distribution.
Edit: to expand on the comments in the NPR piece- Macklemore and Ryan Lewis didn't sign with a label to get distribution, they stayed independent despite hiring ADA (a subsidiary of the Warner Music Group) to get them distribution.